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North Coast 500 is a world leader on Instagram

Scotland’s North Coast 500 is one of the most popular routes in the world with Instagrammers.

The route is ranked 16th in the world, and second in the UK, according to new research.

The North Coast 500 is a 516-mile scenic route around the north coast of Scotland, starting and ending at Inverness Castle. The route is also known as the NC500 and was launched in 2015, linking many features in the north Highlands of Scotland in one touring route.

Searches for ‘perfect road trip’ have risen by 40%* over the past month, suggesting that roads are more than just a journey – they can also be worthy destinations themselves. But which road trips are also worthy of the ‘Gram?

This question was tackled by Uswitch.com/car-insurance , who collated Instagram hashtags for road trips around the globe to reveal the most popular among social media-savvy travellers!

U.S. Route 66 is the most Instagrammed road trip. Although only 85% of the historic highway is still drivable, the “Mother Road” continues to spark interest in car enthusiasts that dream of traversing the United States as it raked in a whopping 1,908,149 hashtags – 22 times more than Canada’s Cabot Trail in 20th place.

In second place is another iconic American road, Big Sur Coast Highway – its hashtag was shared 1,422,501 times on Instagram by drivers looking to see the stunning views of the California coast.

Great Ocean Road is the third most popular road trip on Instagram. With 1,403,245 hashtags, it stretches along the windswept South-Eastern coast of Australia and showcases natural landscapes that include volcanoes and waterfalls.

Uswitch found out that eight out of the 20 most Instagrammed road trips are in Europe. The Wild Atlantic Way in Ireland is not only the fourth most Instagrammed road trip in the world but also the number one in Europe with 1,373,838 hashtags. Snowdonia in Wales took fifth place.

Following closely behind is North America (seven road trips out of 20). Whilst the United States is home to 5 of the most Instagrammed road trips, its neighbour Canada boasts 2 breathtaking ones – Icefields Parkway (112,675) and Cabot Trail (86,327).

Find out more about the North Coast 500 HERE.

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